Process of dampening leather



f UNITED STATES-PATENT OFFICE.

FHEIJEEIK J. PLATZ, or WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, AssIGNoE To THE PHILADELPHIA.

'TEXTILE MACHINERY COMPANY, or PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORA- TION OF PEN N SY LYAN IA.

' PEocEss oEsnAMPENING LEATHER.`

To all lwhom #may concern.'

Be it known that I, FREDERICK J. BLA'rz, 'a citizen of the United States, and a res1- dent of WilmingtomcountyofNew Castle, State of Delaware have invented certain Improvements in Iirocesses, of D ampenlng Leather, of which the following 1s a speciiication. i

1'Ihe object of my invention is to improve the process of dampening leather prior to certain finishing steps in the treatment of the leather during ,its manufacture.

Leather after being dyed and dried is' acter of the leather, soas to meisten themA suiiciently. In this method, it is impossible to introduce the proper percentage of mois-'-`r 'ture because of the uneven application; of

water in 'dampening the sawdust .before using.

Another old method is to immerse the leather in warm water for a longer or shorter period, varying from vtwo to ten or more amoving carrier, such as an endless beltil. This vbelt is preferably open so as to expose the under side of the leather. Any suitable means may be provided for `traversing the leather and both sides of the leather are sub- Specication of Letters Patent. Appucio; med .February 14, '1917; serial NQ.

Patented Sept.` *7, 1920.' 148,677. l l i jected to a spray of water. This spray-can."

Ybe regulated so as' to provide the proper amountl of moisture. In the present instance, 2, 2 arewater plpes and/3, 3 are air pipes,

boththe water and the ainbeing under pres-1 sure, and a series of nozzles 4 are in alinement-with the nozzles 5 projectingfrom the?` A, water pipes,r.the water and vair being under the control of suitable valves so as to regulate the amount of water and air and insuring the proper proportions of water and air to produce the lbest results. It is alsopossible to ilse water sprayed by its own pressure without the use of air or steam tonvaporheating coil by means of which thetemperatureof thespray box can be maintained as materially to softeri the body of the hides or lize it. An important factor, is thev use ofaV skins, causing them to absorb the water more vuniformly and more quickly than heretofore. ,Y I preferably arrange a series of these spraying devices, one located in advance of-l the other, sothat as the leather travels it will be subjectedto a series of sprays. v It will be -understood that'while I have shown 'at 6, in some instancesthe leather may be. subjected to the action of'agspray from a Vsingle row of jets and the leather reversed so that bothn sidesn canbe sprayed. In fact, in some instances, a hand spray can be used without departing from the essential features of the invention.

I preferablyv heat the interior of the casing and keep itl at an eventemperature so as vto soften the skins in order that they may the more, readily receive the moisture. In the drawings, I have shown a series of heatlng p1pes 7, but other means may 4be used .thespraying devices located in a casing, as' i without departing from the spirit of the invention.

By this, process the time consumed in dampening eather can be vmaterially shortened andA t e amount of moisture can also be regulated, insuring a more even dampeni ing than heretofore. Furthermore, this improved process takes up considerably less .room than the old process and-the sawdust usually employed is dispensed with.

Thesand and dirtaccumulating in reused sawdust has alwaysbeen an addedannoydampening thereof, which consists in subance to the leather finishers. In this process, ljecting the leather, while in a ilat condihowever, only one-half the labor isrequiredA tion, to water inthek formof tine spray in 10 'as compared with the process'in which sawthe presence of heat, whereby the body of 5 dust is used. 'y .the leather may be softened by thecombined I claim.: action of heat and moisture. 4

fThe process pf treating leather to eect p REDKYERICK J.v BLAT'Z 

